Summer Camping
by PinkFireandGoldenStars
Summary: Lucy has an idea! One day Lucy rushes into the guild with a new activity for her friends to do. "Let's go camping!" What happens when our favourite Fairy Tail mages go camping? Fun, adventure and a little bite of chaos of course. WARNING! Set after Grand Magic Games, SPOILERS!
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys! Long time no see, yeah? Sorry about not updating my other fics, I'm an annoying author, I tend to leave them where I can't pick them up. Anyway, this fic shouldn't be too long, probably about eight chapters. Hopefully I won't take too long to update this one.**

 **Disclaimer: The characters and places in this fic belong to Hiro Mashima, as always.**

 **Enjoy!**

"Natsu!"

I yelled his name out as I ran into the guild. Almost before I finished saying his name he turned towards me, his usual bright grin spread across his face.

"Hey Luce! What's up?" he called as I continued making my way to the bar.

I panted as I came to a halt, holding a hand up to signal him to wait. I had woken up this morning with a great idea and, in my excitement, had run all the way to the guildhall. I let the grin I had been holding, spread across my face just before I revealed my amazing plan.

"We should go camping!" I said, no other explanation in sight.

Natsu blinked and looked at me blankly.

"Camping?"

"Yeah you know, where you go bush for a while, sleep in a tent and have toasted marshmallows around a bonfire! Honestly I've never done it before but it could be fun right?"

A slow grin formed on Natsu's face.

"That does sound fun. YOSH! LET'S GO CAMPING!" he yelled.

I giggled at his enthusiasm and quickly started brainstorming what would happen. A few people looked up at his sudden outburst but just pegged it to Natsu being Natsu and ignored him.

"Okay, so I was thinking maybe a week. And I planned what we'll do. We'll try to avoid using magic but we can use it in our spare time I guess. So I've come up with a basic schedule, really just an activity per day sort of thing and I was thinking we could go to Galuna Island. I contacted them just before, in case we decided to go there, and they seem pretty okay with it and…"

"Wow Luce you're pretty organised. When did you think of this?"

"This morning. Though I have been wanting to do something fun since we got back from the games. Something to take everyone's mind off of things. Now you interrupted my planning damn it! Where was I?"

I continued mumbling to myself, not noticing the sudden sadness that clouded Natsu's eyes. After him being quiet for a little too long, I looked up to see him staring at the guild mark on my hand, his eyes squinted in concentration.

"Natsu?" I urged.

His gaze snapped up to mine and, on seeing my worried expression, let an easy grin settle on his face.

"S'nothing Luce. Don't worry 'bout me. So, who's coming, just us three?"

I didn't believe him as I could still that sadness in his eyes, but he clearly didn't want to talk about it so I let him off.

"I was thinking we could make it quite big, all our closest friends. So I was thinking Gray, Erza, Wendy, Carla, Gajeel, Levy, Pantherlily and Juvia. Sound good?"

"Sounds great! That way I can beat the ice princess and metal breath in everything we do! I'm all fired up now! When do we go?"

"Well, if everyone's good to go, we could leave tomorrow."

"Yosh! I'll go tell 'em. See you tonight Luce!"

With that he ran off. I watched with amusement as he scurried around to each person telling them and then watching their reactions. It was quite funny. Gray seemed pretty eager to go, so of course Juvia was happy as well. I think she was touched that she was invited actually. I smiled, hopefully she and I could become closer friends after this week.

Erza seemed pretty excited about it as well, though she did walk past me to Mira, mumbling something about strawberry cake. I just chuckled. Wendy also seemed happy to go, Carla was a little reluctant but she agreed anyway. Gajeel and Levy were the funniest. Levy immediately perked up and started brainstorming, just like me, whereas Gajeel scowled and denied coming on our impromptu holiday. Natsu was about to start a fight, hopefully being able to convince Gajeel after knocking him about, but it was Levy that managed to convince him. She looked up at him and gave him puppy dog eyes, saying this was something she really wanted to do and I was nice enough to invite him so he should accept it. Gajeel grumbled and looked away from her, a light red tinting his cheeks, finally agreeing to come.

That night saw Natsu completely passed out on my bed, his now full pack resting against the wall. We had spent two hours running back and forth making sure everything we needed was packed for tomorrow morning. To ensure he actually helped me I hadn't let Natsu eat so maybe he had collapsed from starvation? Nah, it was Natsu, he's like immune to that. Just to be sure I prodded him and he let out a gurgling snore and then soft mumble of something that sounded suspiciously like my name. I smiled gently and let him stay there. Yes okay I had a huge soft spot when it came to the pink haired ball of destruction.

I moved over to my dresser and grabbed my comfiest pair of pyjamas, knowing full well that I wouldn't be using pyjamas for a week. I went into the bathroom to change, Natsu had a habit of waking up at the most inappropriate times, and came back out feeling refreshed and tired. Seeing as I would be sleeping on the ground for a week, I didn't feel like setting myself up on the floor like I normally would when Natsu decided he wanted my bed. So instead of gathering blankets and what not, I slipped in next to my best friend, leaving a decent amount of space between us and facing away from him.

Just as I was getting comfortable I felt something snake its way over my side and wrap around my waist. It pulled me back, pushing me flush against a chiselled chest. I felt his warmth envelop me and instantly felt my tense shoulders relax. I sighed deeply knowing I couldn't never get out of Natsu's strong hold and simply let him hold me close, his face pressed in my hair. Just as I was falling asleep I heard Natsu mumble something that made my face explode in a violent blush, his lips brushing against my ear.

"Lucy, don't you know this is where you belong?"

"Where?" I whispered.

"In my arms." He replied, just as soft.

"Natsu!" I squeaked.

"G'night Luce."

I felt him smile against the back of my neck before moving his head back to its original position.

"Good night Natsu." I sighed, my eyes slipping shut as I faded into a dreamless sleep.

 **So, like it so far? I hope you enjoyed the little bit of NaLu I put in the end there. Hehe! Please leave me a review and hopefully I'll update this within the week. :D**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey everyone! Guess who? So I got a lot of positive feedback for this one which I didn't think I would. I'm super excited to continue this one and hopefully it won't drag on too much. I'll try to update this one every Saturday from now on so look out for that.**

 **Disclaimer: Hiro Mashima owns all the fabulous characters in this fic (sorry if they're a little OOC)**

 **Enjoy!**

The next morning saw all eleven of us standing on the train platform waiting for our train to take us to Hargeon. Everyone was excited to go, even Natsu and Gajeel, who were not so happy about going on a train to get there. Seeing as everyone had so much luggage we put it all on Erza's luggage cart, although it was hard to fit our bags on there as well as all of hers. The driver was nice enough to let us attach the cart to the back of the train rather than get rid of some bags, though I think that was partly due to Erza's frightening presence as she was the one who bought the tickets.

After the train started moving, Natsu and Gajeel were out for the count. Levy and I sighed as we suddenly became human pillows. Gajeel was slumped over Levy, almost completely covering her by his large form, snoring as loud as a chainsaw. I was more fortunate than Levy but only slightly. Natsu had simply fallen, landing his head in my lap, his pained groaning making me place my hands in his hair and massage his temples slowly. The soothing motion made him relax slightly and he was a lot quieter. This by itself would have been comfortable enough but I was set on reading for the trip so, while stroking his hair, I held my book up with one hand resulting in a painful cramp. I was stubborn though and continued to read despite the pins and needles coursing through my arm and the numbing of my fingers.

When eventually it became too much I put my arm down and turned to see all my 'friends' staring at me suggestively. I scowled at them and they tried hard to suppress their laughing. I knew it as slightly amusing because of everyone's clear belief that we liked each other but Levy's reaction was far too intense for it to be mildly amusing. Her face was going purple from trying not to laugh. When I raised my eyebrow in question Gray pointed to Natsu. I looked down at him and what I saw made my face explode into a colour that surely resembled Erza's hair. Natsu was lying on my lap as usual but instead of facing the ceiling like normal, his head was turned to the other side of the cabin and with every slight jostle of the train his lips brushed against my thigh. I have no idea how I hadn't noticed this but in order to save my dignity I reacted the only way I knew how.

I screamed and shoved him off me and onto the floor.

At my outburst everyone let go of their chuckles and raucous laughter filled the cabin. Unfortunately this resulted in both dragon slayers waking up. Gajeel sat bolt upright for about five seconds and then slumped over uncomfortably, groaning away. Levy tried to sooth him but she was still choking on her giggles. Natsu opened his eyes blearily and turned his sleepy gaze to me with a slight glare and pout. I felt my heart speed up with the look he sent me and smiled innocently.

"Lushi, why did you push me on to the floor?" he whined.

I blushed deeply and turned my head trying to conceal my burning face.

"N-no reason. J-just go to sleep!" I stuttered out.

I heard Natsu groan before falling onto his back, trying to find peace in slumber once again. I managed to turn around again fast enough that I saw his cheeky grin. I gasped as the only logical explanation taunted my mind.

 _He knows! He knows what he did! Oh I swear when we get off this thing I'm going to Lucy Kick him so hard he won't…._

My thoughts were interrupted by the shrill whistle of the train and the grinding of the brakes, the train sliding to a halt as we had arrived. Everyone jumped up excitedly and scrambled for our backpacks that we had with us. Natsu and Gajeel were the most excited as they bolted out of the carriage and flopped on the ground. Gajeel got up quickly but Natsu just stayed there yelling about his love for solid ground or something crazy like that. We all shook our heads and sighed at his childish display. Once we had gathered everything we stepped out of the carriage and Erza went to the back of the train to collect the rest of our luggage.

The minute I stood on the ground Natsu jumped up and scrambled over to me, slinging an arm around my shoulders and grinning. I rolled my eyes at his silly behaviour before I remembered that I was supposed to Lucy Kick him to the moon right now. As I slipped out of his hold and turned to face him I spied the docks and my face twisted into an evil smirk. I leaned into his ear and whispered something that had him falling on to the ground, his face pale as a sheet and clutching his stomach.

"Oh Natsu, we still have to catch a boat."

Oh yes, revenge is sweet. I grinned as I grabbed his hand, pulling him up and dragging him to the docks. He whined the whole way and the second he set foot on the boat he collapsed. I sighed and dragged him with me to the side of the boat, dumping him on the ground while I leaned over the railing and gazed out over the ocean. Ever since our job that we completed on Galuna so long ago, shipmasters had been more eager to go there resulting in our vessel being a fine sailing ship that rolled gently with the current of the sea. Birds soared over head and the water sparkled in the bright sunlight. It was a beautiful day and I was so content I started humming a song, a lullaby that my mother use to sing to me.

We made it to the island quickly and everyone jumped off, surveying the island Team Natsu had saved all those years ago. It was just as I remembered and I sighed blissfully as I breathed in the fresh air, turning to everyone to see their expressions similar to mine. I grinned and started the walk to our first campsite.

 **How do we like the first adventure/hurdle of our favourite guild members? Let me know in a review and I'll see you in a week! Thanks guys! :D**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey Everyone! So sorry this is a day late but here it is! I won't be able to update next week and possibly the week after either. I'm so sorry! I hope you all like this one, it's quite long so yeah. I like it so hopefully you do.**

 **Disclaimer: Hiro Mashima guys, all I'm gonna say.**

 **Enjoy!**

The next morning I woke up early, before everyone else. It was a nice feeling to be in a place so peaceful and serene. I made my way to the beach and stood in the water for a little while, feeling the cool sea water lap at my ankles. I turned my face up to the early morning sun and breathed in the salty air of the sea. A slight breeze swept around my form and I sighed deeply. I turned back around to go wake everyone up but it seemed that someone was already awake.

Natsu stood at the edge of the forest watching me with the most intense look on his face and I could have sworn he was blushing. I brushed it aside though and walked up to him. As I drew nearer he snapped out of whatever trance he was in and his usual grin spread over his face. I smiled back up at him and beckoned for him to follow as I started to get breakfast stuff ready. He followed eagerly and I giggled at his antics.

"What's so funny Luce?"

"You, you're like a lost puppy."

At this Natsu whined making me laugh louder.

"See?"

"Lucy! Don't be so mean." He whined.

I just waved him off and set about getting the ingredients for breakfast. I thought we should have a treat for our first day so I made egg and bacon muffins. Natsu watched with interest from a distance but the second he smelt frying bacon he ran up to me and stood directly behind me. I rolled my eyes and turned to glare at him half-heartedly.

"Natsu, if you touch this bacon I will not hesitate to Lucy Kick you back to Hargeon."

He gulped and nodded quickly, mumbling a quick 'Aye Sir', not taking his eyes off the bacon. I gently nudged him to make sure his attention was on me before talking.

"Tell you what, if you can wake everyone up for me, without causing a fight, I will let you have extra bacon. Okay?"

The second I finished Natsu was off to where everyone slept peacefully. I giggled as he tried his hardest not to start something with Gray. Luckily for me the promise of bacon was too strong for him to resist.

After everyone was done with breakfast, and Natsu had finished off everyone's leftovers, Erza made everyone clean up before we started the day's activities. I went to go grab the equipment needed for today and ensured that Wendy had helped the two other dragon slayers with their motion sickness problems. When the camp was spotless I called everyone down to the beach. Everyone cheered once they saw the equipment and eagerly went about getting ready.

 **Today's activity: Sea Kayaking**

As the kayaks were doubles everyone had to choose a partner. I smiled almost evilly as my plan came into play. Almost as soon as everyone had figured out that the kayaks were intended for two paddlers, the group separated into what I expected. Juvia latched onto Gray while he tried to pretend that he wasn't happy about that. Gajeel literally dragged Levy over to him, Lily shaking his head and following. Erza took Wendy's hand and led her over to their kayak. And, as I expected, Natsu bounded up to me and grabbed my right hand, smiling his signature grin. I laughed as he tried to drag me over to the boats without making me fall over.

Once everyone was settled in the kayaks and on the water, the real fun began. Naturally Gray and Natsu started racing each other, forcing poor Juvia and I to try and keep up with their crazy paddling. As we passed Erza though we accidentally splashed her with the spray coming off our paddles. Instead of telling everyone off like I thought she would, she got a determined glint in her eye and joined in. It was so much fun, racing each other, our laughter ringing in the air. I turned around at one point to see what Levy and Gajeel were up to and what I saw made me giggle. Gajeel was obviously teasing her about something as she was bright red but I could see they were both smiling and it looked like they were having a good time. Unfortunately my kayaking partner decided that Gajeel should join in with our race, as he would normally join in a brawl at the guild.

"Hey metal head! What're you doin' all the way back there? Didn't you know this is a race?"

"Natsu…" I groaned.

Luckily Gajeel seemed to think it would be fun to join so they quickly caught up and we kept going until reached a cute little beach. Upon seeing it I yelled out for everyone to stop and then go into the beach. Everyone agreed though Wendy and Levy looked the most relieved that they would be getting a break from the intense paddling war.

Once we were on the beach all us girls, except Erza of course, flopped down on the warm sand and refused to move. That was until, of course, Natsu decided that he was bored. After he had spent about ten minutes pestering me I eventually got up, groaning and mumbling curses at him. When I remembered what I had planned though I instantly perked up. I went over to my kayak and got out eleven bags. I threw a bag at each person and they all opened them quickly to see what was inside. They all cheered when they saw it, complimenting me on my choice of activities.

 **Activity of the day #2: Snorkelling**

We all ran down to the water, jumping in and those who were a little slow got dragged under. We swam around, marvelling at the vibrant coral and bright fish that were all around us. I had to grab Happy's tail a few times to stop him from eating the fish. Every time I did this he would glare at me but I would just give him a look and he would swim up to Natsu, trying to get away from me.

As we swam around, it became apparent that this camping trip was more important for everyone than I thought it was. It was the first time in a while that I had seen everyone look so relaxed and calm. There were races and treasure hunts in the safe and peaceful world under the sea. There were a few times when Natsu tried to trick me into thinking there were sharks and I saw Gajeel doing the same to Levy. We swam a little further in, away from the coral, and had an intense game of chicken.

I'm not sure how long we spent there but by the time we had kayaked back to our original camping ground, everyone was exhausted and starving. Levy and I began cooking dinner and soon everyone was laughing and telling stories about what happened on Galuna all that time ago. It was fun sitting around the little campfire we had made and joking about everything. Gray and Natsu decided that it would be a great idea to try and scare everyone, poor Wendy was close to tears. When that happened everyone told them off and they quietened down after that, looking a little sheepish. Everyone laughed at their antics and how strange it was that they would even try and work together to do something.

Our first day on camp came to a close with Erza telling everyone to go to bed. We immediately settled down and got into our sleeping bags, everyone exhausted from the day's work. I let a secret smile slip onto my face as I thought of tomorrow's activity I had planned. I sought out my spirits among the stars before I closed my eyes and I slipped into slumber with the sound of the boys snoring and Happy's sleep talking sounding in my ears.

 **So, how was it? Let me know in a review please! They honestly make me write more, I swear! Sorry again and I'll see you in a few weeks! Thanks for reading too guys!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey everyone! So it's been a while since I've updated this and I thought, after going on another school camp recently, that I should probably finish this. Also there was a lot of pressure from one of my very good friends** ** _ThisIsMyStarSpangledJam,_** **seriously, thank her, and from reading all of your lovely reviews from the last chapter! So thanks for that. Also this chapter's a little on the short side but the one after it is pretty long, so you'll get that on in a couple of days. Maybe tomorrow if I remember.**

 **Disclaimer: I do NOT own any of the characters or songs mentioned in this chapter, I do own the plot though so, yeah.**

 **Enjoy!**

I woke up late the next morning, the sound of the group's chatter sounding in my ears. I opened my eyes slowly and scowled at the sky as the sun blinded me. I sat up and winced at my stiff joints. Standing up I stretched out my limbs, cracking my spine, resulting in the release of my back. I smiled from the good feeling and made my way over to my noisy friends.

"Good morning everyone!"

"Hey Lucy!" was the collective response.

I noticed that no one bothered to make a hot breakfast today, instead opting for mueslis and yoghurt. I got myself some yoghurt and a banana and sat down to enjoy my breakfast. The second I did everyone halted what they were doing and looked at me expectantly. I leaned back a little, slightly intimidated by my friends' behaviour.

"Uh…what's up guys?"

"Lucy, tell us, what are we doing today?!"

I winced at their loud voices and the fact that they leaned closer still. I was about to tell them when an evil thought crossed my mind. I silently went back to eating my breakfast, loving the tang of the yoghurt and the sweetness of the banana. Everyone gasped and jumped up, crowding around me.

"LUCY!"

"Yes?"

"PLEASE?!"

I stifled a laugh as they all started to give me puppy dog eyes. I shook my head and started cleaning my bowl. Everyone turned around, their mouths open, following my movement with their very intense gaze. I continued getting ready for the day, packing things up and sorting out food. I went into our storage tent that I had set up the night before. I got out a pack for each person and filled them with what we would need; tarps, stoves, playing cards, that sort of thing. I didn't want everyone knowing what we were doing just yet. They'd figure it out pretty quickly anyway.

I walked back to the group, clearing my throat to gain their attention. Surprisingly it worked, something I wished happened normally. I smiled at them and then pointed to the pile of bags, telling them to grab one and make sure it was comfy. They all rushed to follow my orders. While they sorted themselves out I cleaned up the camp. I took a minute to get myself organised and then I gestured for them to follow me.

"Hey, Lu?"

"Yeah Levy?"

"Where are we going, exactly?" She asked, curiosity lacing her calm tone.

It seemed as everyone else heard as there were questioning shouts fired soon after. Levy and I both winced at the loud volume and I scowled when I saw that it was hurting Wendy's ears too.

"How about everyone shuts up so I can answer?" I yelled.

Immediately everyone quieted down and looked a little sheepish too. I inwardly smirked at the power I had over everyone, it was great!

"That's better, now. We are going on a bushwalk and then setting up a new camp for a night when we reach the spot. Any complaints?" I asked, mainly to see if anyone was hurt or tired from yesterday.

"HELL YEAH!" they cheered.

"Good then let's get going."

The trail for the walk lead us through the forest of Galuna Island. We could have walked along the coast as we were heading towards another beach but I thought it would be more fun if we went through the forest. It was cool in the speckled sun and deep shade created by the towering trees. We almost lost Juvia when we filled our canteens up at a stream and she fell in. In her shock her body instantly reverted to her water form and Gray had to freeze the stream to get her back out again. Then we had to wait for Natsu to thaw both the stream and Juvia. It was quite funny but Juvia was pretty embarrassed. I went to go comfort her but Gray beat me to it and was murmuring something to her that had her smiling again. I let a small grin grace my own face before I turned around and kept walking. Natsu and I were at the front because I knew where we were going and he was pestering me. Gray and Juvia were behind us with Erza and Wendy following them, leaving Gajeel and Levy to bring up the rear.

We reached a fairly steep incline that was basically a pile of rocks pretty soon after that and we scrambled up it, everyone helping each other out. A few of us, myself included were panting as we reached the top, especially because it was in one of the few open spaces of the track so the midday sun was hot on our heads. We carefully made our way down the other side, Gajeel catching Levy when she slipped, letting out a small 'eep'. Everyone laughed as Levy turned crimson and puffed her cheeks out. We continued walking, all us girls singing as we went. Our playlist ranged from Fireflies by Owlcity to Radioactive by Imagine Dragons and Check Yes Juliet by We the Kings. The guys joined in when we attempted to sing All-star by Smash Mouth. Everyone cringed at Gajeel's awful singing but we were all pretty amazed at how decent Gray and Natsu were. Actually Natsu wasn't too bad at all, some would even say he was pretty good.

After about four hours we reached the end of the trail. Everyone was sufficiently tired and ready to just hang out. I lead them down a steep set of steps carved out of the smooth rock. Everyone gawked at the beauty of the sea from here, it was all you could see for miles. I continued leading them down the beach. We all took our shoes off and walked through the sea, cooling our hot feet. We kept walking until we reached a staircase leading back up to the forest. I lead them up there and we stopped completely at a little camping ground amongst the trees. Everyone partnered off again and set up their tarps quickly before regrouping in the centre of the trees, resting our feet on the a few rocks that were stationed here and there.

And then, I pulled out the Uno cards.

 **And there we go! I hope y'all enjoyed this. Leave me review/favourite/follow if you did. If you have any other feedback or if you'd like to see something specific happen, let me know in a review or a PM and I'll see you in a few days! Bye! :D**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey Everyone! Wow, two updates in two days, be proud guys! So yeah, I thought I should post this because the last chapter was pretty short. Just to warn you, this one has a pretty sad moment so yeah, be warned.**

 **Enjoy!**

The second everyone saw the cards they sat up straight and shuffled together, forming a tighter circle. Not wanting to get the cards overly dirty, I grabbed a tiny fold out table that I had brought and set it up in the centre of the circle. I dealt everyone some cards and the game began. As we played, however, it soon became clear that everyone had a different set of rules. I ended the round and we sorted out our rules. In the end, the rules looked something like this. 1. No ending on action card, just to make everything a bit harder. 2. Pick up/put down, basically meaning that if you can't go you only pick up one card, which is different to how Natsu, Happy and I play where you keep picking up until you can put down but seeing as there so many people, we went with the option with less cards involved. 3. You can pick up two cards together up to pick up sixteen but you can't put a pick up two on top of a pick up four and make someone pick up six. And those were the three rules. Once that was settled, we started again.

It started off pretty nicely, everyone was able to put down quite frequently and the game continued smoothly. Unfortunately there came the time when someone hadn't been able to place in a while, meaning their hand grew. As mean as it sounds, this poor soul turned out to be Wendy, which was quite funny because fairly soon her tiny hands couldn't hold all the cards. After many dropped cards and a lot of frustration, Wendy and Carla teamed up with each girl holding half the hand. Of course after that the two other exceeds wanted to partner up with their respective dragon slayers, which they had no qualms about. I just thought Happy didn't want to lose and thought that if he teamed up with Natsu, he had a better chance of winning. Same went with Pantherlily although he actually had a better chance of winning as when he Gajeel teamed up, both boys only had three cards each.

Everyone was eager to win this game because we had all decided that the loser would be cleaning up after dinner. Initially there was going to be three rounds and the ultimate loser would be decided, also the ultimate winner who I announced would get a prize. But because our game had been going for about an hour now and we had flipped the discard pile about fifteen times, we agreed that one game would suffice. So the game continued and started to get a little heated as time wore on. People were getting hungry and they were also getting frustrated because Levy had won ages ago and yet there was still no clear loser, or even anyone who looked likely to come second. And yet when I suggested we just call it a night and make dinner, everyone shouted their disapproval and we kept playing. After another half hour and with still no other winners in sight, I forfeit and put my cards into the discard pile. Everyone whined and teased me until I told them that if I hadn't have stopped, there would be no dinner which shut them up pretty quickly. Erza asked if I needed any help, which was nice but I think she just felt bad. So I said I would be fine and took all the cooking stuff and went down to the beach to cook, not wanting to attract any animals with spilt food.

I went about making a massive heap of pasta for everyone, relishing in the delicious smells coming from the pot. Even from all the way down here I could hear everyone shouting about the game. I laughed quietly to myself as I finished up. I turned to go back up the stairs to tell everyone and jumped when I saw them all standing in a line, bowls ready and cutlery in hand. I shook my head in amusement at them before I started to serve up. Everyone found a spot to eat and they all complimented my cooking. I smiled and thanked them and before long everyone was finished.

"So," I said, "who's washing up then?"

"Well," Erza started, "Gajeel proposed you do it because you forfeited however we all convinced him otherwise."

I flinched, judging from Erza's previous convincing methods and that glint in her eye, Gajeel would have received a few bad bruises. I quickly glanced at him and sure enough, he had a deep bruise on his arm. I winced and turned back to Erza, signalling for her to continue. But it was Juvia who spoke up.

"So in the end Juvia must clean up because Juvia lost." She said, already collecting everyone's bowls.

"Alright then." I said. "Hey Levy, do you want to get your prize now?"

Levy's face lit up and she eagerly followed me back up the stairs where I grabbed her a block of chocolate.

"Here you go, congrats! Though it wasn't much of surprise." I giggled.

"Haha, thanks Lu!" she laughed.

We both laughed as we headed back down to the beach. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Juvia cleaning up in a fresh water creek that lead out to the sea, under the stairs. She looked quite upset and I frowned.

"Hey Lev?"

"Yeah Lu?"

"I'm just going to go talk to Juvia, I'll be right back." I said, already heading over there.

"Alright, I'll save you two some chocolate then."

"What?" I asked, slightly confused.

"I'm going to share my prize, I mean obviously I'll have more, but I want to share it." She said, a gentle smile gracing her pretty face.

I matched her smile and nodded before going to Juvia. I heard their cheering and my smile grew. It soon turned into a frown when I saw Juvia. She was silently crying as she washed up and immediately my heart went out to her. Not wanting to startle her I called out to her before I got too close. She jumped and I saw her form waver a little like it does before she transforms into her water form. I winced, not wanting to go through _that_ again. Luckily she stayed solid and granted me a small smile despite the tears flowing down her cheeks. I walked forward and sat down on the bank of the creek.

"Hey Juvia." I began.

"Hello Love Rival." She replied, making me sigh.

"Firstly, I am not your love rival, at all. I view Gray as a big brother so that would just be wrong okay? And I'm like 99.9 percent sure he sees me as a little sister, so please, call me Lucy."

"Okay Lo-Lucy-san." She corrected. "Juvia believes you."

"Thank you. Now, what's wrong? I saw you were upset and I was wondering if you needed anything." I asked gently. "Surely losing a game of Uno isn't that upsetting?" I joked.

Juvia smiled weakly and shook her head, a small laugh escaping her.

"No that's not why Juvia is sad. Juvia is just thinking." She muttered.

"Can I ask what you're thinking about?" Juvia drew in a deep breath before speaking.

"During the fight against the dragons, Juvia watched Gray-sama get shot and die. It was like a dream or a vision so we prevented it actually happening but, Juvia can't shake the feeling that it did happen and…" she stopped.

"And time was reversed." I finished.

"Yes that's it!" Juvia exclaimed, wide eyed. "So Lucy-san experienced it too?"

"Yeah, I did. I didn't go through something as bad as that though." I murmured, thinking back to how I had died myself in that weird vision and how I watched future Lucy die too.

In all honesty what I experienced was weird and profound but I still think what Juvia saw was worse. I know that if I'd seen Natsu killed I would be a mess. I remembered I had to talk to him about that actually. But I focused back on Juvia. Her face was withdrawn again and there were tears building up in her eyes.

"Gray-sama died protecting Juvia. It was all Juvia's fault. He was shot so many times, there was so much blood." Juvia wailed. "And now Juvia is a bit more clingy which annoys Gray-sama!"

I gasped, rushing forward and pulling her into a tight hug. I stroked her hair and soothed her as she sobbed. I slowly rocked her back and forth, shushing her quietly. I felt myself tear up as my shirt grew damp from her crying. She was holding me so tight it was almost hard to breathe but I just kept comforting her. Eventually her sobs turned to whimpers and then to hiccups as the tears stopped. I let her go so she could wipe her eyes and I just watched her, a deep sympathy filling my heart. When she felt a bit better we gathered all the cleaning up and headed back to the others.

"You know Juvia, we were all just going to sit around here and talk for a bit, maybe head over to those rocks over there. You should talk to Gray, let him know what's going on. It'll all work out, trust me." I encouraged.

Juvia nodded and while I was putting all the cooking stuff back together she went over to Gray and they both went down the beach. Gajeel watched her go, an intense sadness in his eyes, and then his gaze met mine. He, Wendy and Natsu all came over to me and I winced. They must have heard.

"Will Juvia be alright?" Wendy whispered.

"Luce, that was real nice of ya, but will she be good?" questioned Natsu.

"Thanks for looking after the rain woman, bunny girl." Gajeel muttered.

I sighed, they all looked so worried but Natsu looked a little proud and Gajeel was actually smiling at me, a genuine smile not just his devil may care smirk.

"She'll be fine and you're welcome Gajeel. Maybe just leave her alone and try not to eavesdrop on people so much, alright?" I said.

"Okay." They all grumbled.

"Good, now, we're going to head over to those rocks over there and play some games." I announced, loud enough for Erza and Levy to hear too, who were just sitting there looking confused. Well Erza was confused, Levy just looked left out.

We raced each other to the rocks and climbed all over them, the dragon slayers using their exceeds to get to the highest places possible. Happy took the opportunity to parade his 'superiority' of course. Everyone just laughed, telling them to come down. They all agreed, after some whining, and we played charades and ran around in the water, getting thoroughly soaked. Poor Levy, Wendy and I were pushed over so many times. Of course this lead to the other three growling at each other and blaming anyone and everyone. Every. Time.

After about half an hour, Gray and Juvia turned up with a freezing wave of water that washed over everyone. Which lead to Natsu whining about how we weren't supposed to be using magic and he, Erza and Gajeel launching themselves at Gray while Levy, Wendy and I shrieked at the cold shock. Juvia laughed but we all gained evil glints in our eyes which had the three exceeds, who were flying above us, yelp and fly up to the rocks. We girls, except Erza, had our own little splash war, all teaming up on Juvia which of course did nothing, but it was fun nevertheless.

When everyone was getting a little cold we got out of the water and huddled around a flaming Natsu, who was happy to have an excuse to use his magic. Pretty quickly everyone was dry and warm so we gathered everything up and headed back up the stairs. Exhausted from the bushwalk and the fun we just had, everyone parted to get some sleep. I was the first to fall asleep and just as I was, I felt Natsu wrap his arm around my waist, pulling me backwards into his chest, because yet again, we were sharing a tarp. I caught him murmur something that had me smiling as I fell asleep.

"Back where you belong Luce."

 **Hey all, hope you liked that! Sorry about the pretty crappy ending. But hey, you can't go wrong with NaLu fluff! So please review if you liked it or have something to say, or PM me if you like. The next chapter will be up in a couple of days. But this will be finished before Christmas! I think I'll do a double update because there'll only be two more chapters, maybe three. Thanks for reading! :D**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey Everyone! So, this came a bit later than I was expecting but oh well. This will be the second last chapter in this fic and I hope you've all enjoyed it so far! This one has a little bit of angst simply because I can't write something this length without having some angst in there somewhere. Also this one's a little longer too!**

 **Disclaimer: I, sadly, do not own Fairy Tail but I do own this plot, because I lived it.**

 **Enjoy!**

It was a lot slower coming back from our spot at the beach. We left early and everyone was tired. I knew they were still having fun but they were just so tired. It looked like only Wendy and I actually slept last night. I think everyone else was talking about something, or maybe planning because they kept grinning evilly at me and I was starting to get a little concerned. I tried to ignore them the best I could and quietly hummed to myself, which only made the grinning worse. I rolled my eyes at their antics and decided that talking to Wendy was my best bet. We talked about nothing in particular, although I did find out that little Wendy had a bit of a crush, something I would guard with my life and something I felt touched to be entrusted with.

When we got to that rocky slope again everyone was completely ignoring us, I think they forgot we were here to be honest. They were ages in front of us and by the time we made it to the top they were already down and walking away, talking all the while. I helped Wendy down as best I could but when I slipped Wendy came tumbling after me. We hit the ground hard and our legs were bleeding and full of little rocks. I cut open my hand on a rock that I caught in order to stop my fall but Wendy hit her head pretty badly and there was blood trickling down her face.

"WENDY!" I screamed, cradling her in my arms. I dug through her bag to find the first aid kit we had brought and cleaned her head, wrapping it in bandages. There were tears in my eyes from worry and pain, my hand dripping in blood from the gash on my palm. My legs were pretty bad too but Wendy still hadn't opened her eyes. I splashed cold water on her face, I shook her, I lightly slapped her. Nothing was working. I started panicking and hyperventilating.

"Wendy please, wake up!" I cried, closing my eyes.

Suddenly I felt her being pulled out my arms and I screamed, tightening my hold on her.

"Lucy please, let me go, I need to heal your hand." Wendy said gently.

I opened my eyes to see Wendy sitting up and looking at me with a gentle smile.

"B-but you weren't waking up!" I wailed.

"But I did, I'm fine, I wasn't knocked out from that I just fainted, I uh, I've been forgetting to drink." She muttered, flushing from her embarrassment. "Sorry Lucy."

"Its fine, I'm just glad you're okay!" I whimpered, pulling her into my embrace.

"Wendy you need to heal Lucy's hand and legs." Another voice cut in.

"Right." Wendy said, pulling away and grabbing my hand.

I looked up to see everyone standing around us, looking worried and…guilty?

"What's wrong guys? Also why are you all here?" I asked.

Natsu, Happy and Levy suddenly rushed forward, pulling me into an embrace.

"We were so worried!" Levy cried.

"I'm sorry Lushi!" Happy wailed.

"I'm sorry I wasn't here Luce." Natsu whispered, holding me tighter.

"Guys, I'm going to have to ask you to get out of the way so I can heal her." Wendy cut in.

Levy and Wendy backed away quickly but Natsu kept close, placing an arm around my shoulders. Wendy looked at me and I shrugged making everyone roll their eyes.

"So Wendy, how come that cut on your head isn't bothering you?" I asked, eyeing it carefully.

"Oh I've learnt how to heal myself a little, Chelia taught me. I couldn't heal it completely but it's not going to bother me at all."

"Oh" was my only response.

I watched Wendy heal my hand and then my legs. As soon as she was done I grabbed her, still full, water bottle and shoved it at her. She smiled sheepishly and downed over half the canteen in a minute. I frowned at her and lightly pinched her. Everyone gasped but Wendy laughed it off.

"Well, we best keep going, right Lucy?" Erza asked.

"Yep, we've delayed enough as it is." I replied.

Erza nodded and lead the group on. Before either Wendy or I could get up, Natsu stopped us.

"Can you walk Luce?" he asked.

"Yes Natsu." I sighed.

"Let me know if you need help." He said.

"Aye sir." I said sarcastically.

He poked his tongue at me and then picked Wendy up, putting her on his shoulders, earning a squeal.

"Come on squirt, let's go!" he said, already walking.

"Natsu! Put me down!" Wendy whined.

"Nope, you won't be able to walk properly with your legs like that." He said.

"I'm fine." She muttered but didn't complain anymore.

I laughed and talked with Natsu and Wendy for the rest of the trek. When everyone passed the stream everyone laughed recalling yesterday's events and Juvia flushed a bright red. We made it back to the other camp pretty soon after that and everyone collapsed in a heap at the camp ground. I got up quickly and laughed at them as they groaned, something about my energy.

I went around gathering everything up and packing it all together. I grabbed everyone's packs off their backs, much to their annoyance, and put them on top of the pile of things. I walked over to a small train that the demons of Galuna had built to transport food and such, chaining our things to the back.

"C'mon everyone, time to get up." I called.

They all grumbled but got up slowly, trudging on to the train. As soon as everyone was on, I jumped to the front and started driving it. Natsu and Gajeel looked very concerned as they voiced their doubts.

"Luce, can you, uh, drive a train?" Natsu asked, face slowly turning green.

"Sure can! Don't worry, I'll try not to make it shake so much." I smiled back at him.

He nodded slowly before he collapsed in a crumpled mess. I laughed and focused on getting to our next spot. Honestly I'd only just learnt, specifically for this trip but I was confident enough.

Sure enough we reached our next spot pretty quickly and without a hitch. We were at a little secluded bay with a wide and white sand beach, crystal blue water and ferns and small trees everywhere. It was beautiful and everyone's mood picked up when they saw it. Everyone rushed off the train and went exploring. Natsu stayed behind to help me set up for the night, thankfully. We set up a huge tarp that was well sheltered and then dug a trench underneath it for extra shelter. We were all going to be sleeping together tonight. I got out the things for food, dinner tonight would be pizzas made on flat breads, which is pretty delicious really.

As I was getting everything ready I noticed Natsu was missing. I went to go look for him and found him walking along the beach, I didn't want to alert him or anything because he looked deep in thought so I just watched. Suddenly he dropped to his knees, bending over, his head touching the ground as he held it in his hands. I quickly ran towards him and as I drew nearer I heard his sobs. When I reached him I put a tentative hand on his back, carefully judging his reaction. I had never seen Natsu like this and it scared me a little. He didn't seem to notice my touch so moved around him and pulled him up into a hug. He snuggled his face into my neck and wrapped his arms around me so tightly I couldn't breathe.

"Natsu could you, loosen up please?" I wheezed.

He relaxed his arms a tiny amount, just enough for me to breathe and move a little if I needed to. I sighed, slipping one of my hands into his hair and rubbing his back with the other. Although it was a little scary to feel Natsu shaking in my arms, I was glad that my presence had calmed enough for him to stop sobbing. He was just hiccupping and sniffing now. Suddenly I heard him mumble something but I didn't quite catch what he said so I asked him to repeat.

"I'm sorry Lucy. I couldn't help you."

"Its fine silly, it was just a fall." I said thinking he was talking about today.

"That's not it Luce. You died." _Oh, I thought_. "Please, don't leave me Luce. I can't live without you." He murmured.

I sighed again. I didn't realise that had been tearing him up so much. I know I sometimes thought about it but never to this extent. Then I realised what I had thought yesterday when Juvia was upset. Natsu _had_ watched me die and it had finally caught up to him, just like it had Juvia.

"It was all my fault, I couldn't stop it." He murmured, fresh tears spilling down his cheeks.

I pushed him away and growled at him, his eyes going wide. _Good, I thought, now he knows how it feels to be growled at._

"Don't you _ever_ say that again. It was _not_ your fault. You hear me Natsu? It was _not_ your fault." I said, holding his gaze the whole time.

"Okay Luce. I'm sorry." He murmured.

"Stop apologising, gees." I muttered.

"Aye sir!" he said, his tears finally stopping.

"Come on, we better get started with dinner, and you sir, have to help me." I said, grabbing his hand and pulling him up.

"Aye sir!" he shouted, grin firmly back in place.

We laughed as we ran back up to the grassed area where there was space for the stoves. We found everyone else there too and they were starting dinner and joking around. We ran in and helped. We all ate dinner sitting under the stars and afterwards everyone gathered firewood to make a campfire. Natsu did the honours by blowing a small stream of fire on the pile, instantly flaring up. Suddenly everyone turned to me and their plan was revealed.

"We're going to have a talent show! And Lucy, you have to sing!" They shouted.

"WHAT?!" I yelled.

Everyone knew I _hated_ singing in front of other people but Natsu, who had caught me singing once, had told everyone that I was 'awesome', to use his words.

"It's okay Luce, you can go last." Natsu said.

"Dragneel…" I growled, lunging for him.

Unfortunately Erza split us up and forced us to sit down, before she took the stage and started, horribly, performing a monologue. Gajeel was next and everyone booed him off, his…singing, hurting everyone's ears. Levy was next and she recited the entire periodic table in order. Everyone's jaw dropped and we just slowly started clapping before Gajeel cheered and then everyone was screaming for her. Happy yelled out "she's a freak!" which resulted in absolutely everyone lunging for him and trying to strangle him, although we had to restrain Gajeel from actually killing him. Happy then apologised profusely, saying that it was just a joke and how awesome he thought Levy was. She went tomato red and sat down quickly gesturing for Wendy to get up.

Wendy asked if she could use magic and we all agreed that she could. She sent out a wind gust to the beach and created an amazing sand sculpture. Everyone cheered and she quickly dropped it and ran down to the front. Carla recited a little poem and had Happy gushing over her. Pantherlily showed off by lifting everyone in his other form. Gray was next and he danced for everyone to cat calls and cheers. He was red the entire time and everyone laughed when he stopped after a minute. Juvia was up next and she got really small containers and fit herself inside them using her water form. It was so cool! And then there was Happy who performed little magic tricks that non-wizards do. It was cute and very funny. Then came Natsu.

He amazed everyone by doing this amazing fire dance. He lit his hands and feet on fire and fire racing up his arms as well as finding two sticks and lighting them on fire. It was mesmerizing to watch as his body spun and twisted with the flames. When he was done everyone screamed out for him. He jumped down with an ecstatic grin and ran over to me, picking me up and spinning me around and then dumping me on the makeshift stage.

I took a deep breath as everyone quieted down. I opened my mouth and started singing quietly at first then getting louder as I fell into the song. I was singing Fix You by Coldplay and as I looked at everyone, they had tears in their eyes. I felt guilty and stopped but they all yelled at me to keep going, so I did. When the song was over they all called for an encore. So I started singing Lost Boy by Ruth B. I loved it, especially after I met Natsu, it reminded of my own story. Everyone cheered and I was so happy. Natsu put me on his shoulders and paraded me around, everyone laughing the whole time. When he put me down I went to go grab the marshmallows and we toasted them on the campfire. It was so nice in the warm summer air that we were all exhausted soon after. We packed up and doused the fire. Natsu pouted because he couldn't eat it as he had created it. We all found our way under the tarp we had made, crawling in the sand, falling over each other every metre or so, and snuggled into each other. On one side of me was Natsu and on the other was Levy, Natsu had an arm wrapped around me tightly and Levy and I had our hands clasped tightly together. I contented myself listening to everyone fall asleep and the waves crashing on the shore. Life was peaceful once again but it was a little sad to know that tomorrow was our last day. Still I knew it would be fun and I couldn't wait to get started.

 **So, that's that. Any tears? I choked up a bit writing this. I hope you all liked it and I'll see you either later today or tomorrow, maybe the next day depending on how busy I am, with the last chapter! Get excited! Please leave a review or PM me if you have nay feedback or have any questions or whatever. I LOVE hearing from you guys, it always makes my day. That's all for now, bye and thanks for reading! :D**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey Everyone! A little late, I'm sorry. Christmas was intense. I hope you all had/have a lovely Christmas/Holiday! So, this is the last chapter, it's all done. Thank you all for reading this and dealing with my horrible updating times. I hope you like the ending!**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot, which is a good thing with my update schedule.**

 **Enjoy!**

The next morning everyone woke up a little groggy and stiff. I managed to drag myself out of Natsu's clutches and crawl over to the cooking area. Because it was our last day I wanted to cook everyone a hot breakfast. I got started quickly so that when everyone was fully awake there would be a nice breakfast for them. No sooner had I started cooking though, when Wendy appeared right next to me.

"Good morning Wendy. How are you?" I asked, keeping my voice down.

"Good morning Lucy! I'm fine. Um, did you need any help?" She asked, voice soft and timid.

I smiled warmly at her and ruffled her deep blue locks affectionately.

"That would be lovely, thank you."

Wendy beamed up at me and began frying some eggs for me. I smiled gently as I watched her hum a little tune to herself as she moved about our little cooking area. She was growing up to be such a strong wizard and yet she was still just a little girl. I felt so proud of her but I couldn't help but think back to what I was doing at her age, bitterness taking over my face.

"Uh, Lucy? Are you alright?" Wendy's sweet voice called.

I snapped out of my daze and nodded quickly, grin firmly in place. When I saw that breakfast was ready and everyone was still asleep I grinned deviously as I had the perfect plan for this. For you see, Natsu was sleeping on one end of the tarp so I stood on the opposite end, holding a pan of bacon. Instantly his nose twitched and his eyes flew open, zeroing in on the pan. In less than ten seconds Natsu had shot up and clambered his way over everyone until he reached the pan, stopping directly in front of me, eyes still transfixed on the sizzling bacon.

"Hey Luce, breakfast time?" he breathed.

I giggled at his obvious hunger and just sauntered back over to Wendy, happily listening to everyone's groans and their threats and insults towards Natsu, who of course, brushed them off and followed me over to the rest of the food.

Pretty soon everyone else came over, their moods lifting as they saw the breakfast we had made for them. Everyone ate slowly, laughing and talking about what we would do today. Eventually their gazes turned on me and I just smiled knowingly at them. They groaned as one knowing that I wouldn't tell them anything. I laughed again and told them we had to take the train back to the other campsite so we had better get moving. Everyone rushed to pack everything up and load onto the back of the train. They were so quick, it only took them about twenty minutes before they were sitting on the train, ready to go.

"Hey Lu?" Levy called as she came up to me.

"What's up Levy?"

"Can I help you drive the train? I've always wanted to do it." She asked, eyes sparkling.

I laughed and pulled her up with me, showing her what she had to do and then, we were off. It was nice talking, more like shouting, to Levy. We hadn't had much time lately to just chat, busy with our teams. As we spoke we would laugh at the poor dragon slayers in the back, groaning over the movement. Everyone else was chatting as well and it was nice to know that everyone was comfortable and in high spirits once again. I told Levy as such and she turned to me with a knowing glint in her eye.

"You planned it to be that way, didn't you Lu." She said.

"Yeah, I did." I admitted, shrugging my shoulders, showing it wasn't such a big deal. "Everybody was so overwhelmed from what happened I guess I just wanted everyone to smile again. I figured getting away from everything would be a good way to do that."

Levy nodded, small smile present on her face. "I agree, this was a great idea. Everyone seems so relaxed. You did well Lu."

"Thanks Lev."

We focused again on driving the train and saw that we were back where we needed to be. We slowed down, pulling the train to a stop. We jumped out and grabbed our things off the back of the train. Our friends stumbled off the train and marched over to us.

"Okay everyone. I'd like you all to put on your bathing suits under your clothes because we're going to get muddy and then come back to the beach."

Everyone rushed to grab their things and came back immediately. I smiled at them, they were all so eager even though they had no idea what we were doing.

"We're going to have to for a little walk before we get there so let's go!" I called, leading the way into the forest.

The day was hot and the coolness of the forest was welcome after being out in the sun. We walked for about two kilometres before we reached a cave, the entrance hidden behind a pile of rocks. We scrambled over the rocks, down into the cave. I pulled out some head torches from my bag I had grabbed and handed them out, everyone putting them on and clicking them on. The cave was illuminated by all or torches and everyone marvelled at the spacious cavern. I lead them on, walking across relatively dry rock. We had to crawl under some parts and duck under others and then, we reached the water. In the cave was a pool of freezing muddy water that lead all the way into the cave. There were squeals as everyone hit the water and the guys just had to start splashing water over everyone else. Us girls screamed and splashed them back before running away. Poor Wendy slipped and almost face planted into the water but Erza and I pulled her up before she could get overly soaked. Erza turned around and glared at the guys, instantly stopping their fight. We laughed at their sheepish behaviour and continued on through the cave. Soon we reached a wall of rock blocking the way with small holes in, just big enough to squeeze through. I opted to stay out in case anyone got stuck or anything and Happy said he'd stay with me.

We both laughed as we saw everyone struggling to get through, except Levy and Wendy of course, they got through really easily. Gajeel got stuck and we had to pull him back out. He grunted his thanks before he leaned against the wall of the cave, waiting for everyone to come back. Happy and I kept trying to scare each other, both of us failing every time. Soon Gajeel got in on the game and successfully scared us both. I screamed out of instinct and immediately I heard Natsu call out my name, asking if I was alright. I rolled my eyes and called back that I was fine. Gajeel suggested we turn our torches off and stand in the water, just out of sight, when they came back and Happy and I eagerly agreed. We heard Erza call out that they were coming back through and we rushed into the water, clicking the lights off and holding our breath. We watched as they came through and instantly had confused looks on their faces. They called out for us and Happy had to stifle his giggle. We let them search around and just as we were about to reveal ourselves, Natsu came barrelling around the corner and bumped into us, knocking me into the freezing cold mud. I shrieked and Happy let out his laughter, his obnoxious giggles echoing through the cave. Gajeel joined him, guffawing as he switched on his light. I glared up at Natsu as he grinned sheepishly, holding out a hand to help me up. I took it and he pulled me into his arms, increasing his temperature to warm me up a little.

"Thanks." I muttered.

"No problem Lucy!" He grinned.

I rolled my eyes, again, and called out to everyone, telling them we were and that we should head back. I watched as Levy happily rambled away to Gajeel about what lay beyond the wall and how he smiled gently at her, his eyes full of admiration. I smiled and followed them out, everybody switching off their lights as we reached the entrance. We all came out and laughed at how covered in mud everyone was.

We raced back through the forest, running to the beach. The hot weather was glorious after the cold of the cave and just made us more eager to reach the water. As soon as we hit the sand we stripped out of our top layers, none faster than Gray, leaving everyone in their bathing suits, still running into the water. We all dove under the waves and washed off the mud. When we were no longer covered in mud we relaxed and I watched Erza go back up to the campsite. I saw her rifle through everything and then she grabbed three surf boards. I grinned widely as she ran back to the beach, holding the boards above her head. Everyone else saw her and cheered, rushing out to grab one first. I'm pretty sure none of us had tried surfing but we were all eager. When we saw Gajeel and Natsu grab a board Levy and I wrenched them back. Natsu pouted and whined and Gajeel grumbled until we explained that they would get motion sick on them. They relented but when Gray grabbed one they grinned evilly at each other and ran back to the water. Erza took another board and I took one as well. Levy, Wendy and Juvia wanted to wait and see how we did it before they gave it a shot. Pantherlily, Carla and Happy all sat on the beach and laughed at our failed attempts.

We soon realised that, if Natsu and Gajeel weren't sabotaging him, Gray would have been pretty good so obviously Erza and I tried harder, catching every wave we could. I fell off a lot at the start but when I got up I kept getting up and rode bigger and bigger waves. It was so much fun until Natsu decided that I would also be fun to flip and he tipped my board up. I fell of and glared at him, about to start a splash fight until I heard the cheers. I looked up and saw Erza riding a wave, standing perfectly, grin firmly in place. She looked so calm and content, much different to how she was a while ago. As she got closer to the beach she stepped off her board gracefully and it got washed up on the shore. Everyone cheered for her again and her smile turned smug, feeling very proud of herself. We all laughed at her and then we have our boards over to the others. Wendy and Levy were shocking, much like I was at the start but Juvia was a natural. It was nice watching them have fun as well. I ran up to the camp site and grabbed a bunch of towels, laying them out before I threw myself down on one. I reclined on the towel and soaked up the warm sun.

Until Natsu came and stood over me, blocking the sun, and whining about how hungry he was. I grumbled but reluctantly got up, having to admit that I was hungry too. I cooked up some pasta because we had leftover ingredients and I knew everyone would be really hungry. As soon as it was done Natsu ran down and called everyone up for me. They all hurried up the beach after him and grabbed a bowl. We sat around, eating and talking. Everyone praised Erza again on her fabulous surfing to which she grew flustered and stuttered out that it was nothing. We laughed at her uncharacteristic modesty, teasing her about it.

When we finished we debated getting back in the water but everyone agreed that we were exhausted so we packed everything up again and started heading back to the pier where our boat was docked. The boat's crew were also eager to leave, luckily, so we all got on and sailed back to Hargeon. The train ride back to Magnolia was subdued as everyone was a little sad that we had to go back home. It was dark when we got back home and everyone grabbed their bags, saying goodnight and organising jobs and things. I was about to leave when Erza grabbed my arm and turned me around.

"Lucy wait. We'd all like to thank you. We all really needed this week and we all loved it. You're kindness and thoughtfulness is unmatched and we are very grateful for what you've done for us. So thank you very much Lucy." She said, pulling me into a hug.

Everyone else took their turns thanking me. Levy gave me a hug, as well as Wendy. Gajeel grunted his thanks and clapped me over the back, sending me forward with the force. Juvia pulled me into a tight hug, whispering her thanks for my help in my ear. I smiled and hugged her back, tears building in my eyes. Gray came over and ruffled my hair, causing me to laugh, the sound heavy with emotion. All the exceeds hugged me as well and I pulled them into a tight embrace. And then Natsu came and enveloped me in his warm arms and I hugged him back. My tears spilled down my cheeks and everyone fussed over me, asking if I was alright. I smiled at them and nodded.

"Thanks everyone! I'm fine, don't worry. I'm glad you had fun and there's no need to thank me, I've been wanting to do something like it for a while." I laughed.

Everyone laughed with me and then they said goodnight again, walking off. Natsu followed me back to my apartment and I couldn't be bothered arguing with him about staying over so I let him do what he wanted.

When we reached my apartment I ran into the bathroom, jumping into the shower and sighing blissfully and the wonderful feeling of being clean. I could hear Natsu laughing at me from the other side of the door but I just ignored him. I got out of the shower half an hour later, fresh and clean. As soon as I came out, wrapped in just a towel, I shoved Natsu in, yelling at him to get clean. I quickly put on my favourite pair of PJs and snuggled into bed, loving the feeling of a bed again. Natsu came back out pretty soon, clean as well before he grabbed a pair of pyjama pants I had bought for him and heading into the bathroom to get changed. I glared at him when came back out shirtless but he ignored me and climbed into bed.

"Natsu you really need to stop doing this, it's not proper for us to sleep in the same bed." I grumbled.

"You worry too much Luce, its fine. No one cares and besides, you can't be proper if you're a Fairy Tail mage, you know that."

"Yeah fine. Whatever." I mumbled.

Natsu chuckled and I turned over. He wrapped my arms around me and nuzzled his head into my neck. I couldn't hold back a smile, I always felt so safe in his arms. Right before I fell asleep I heard him whisper something that made my smile grow.

"Thank you Lucy, I don't know what I would do without you."

 **And there we go. All done! Thank you all again, your support has been amazing! Also thank you to guest, lillyannp, for your review, I'm glad you liked it! Well that concludes this little story, let me know what you thought in a review or a PM, it would be greatly appreciated! :D**


End file.
